POLL: What Books Do You Read?

[Moiraine]

I have posted my book list at the beginning on this thread, and reading all of your answers, I started wondering why I did not think to mention about a good half of the books I read.

I am a real "book addict", you know, I have a room holding only shelves full of books and my piano.

That question bothered me the whole week-end, and I started to realize that I did not think to mention the non-Fantasy books I read ... because I read them in French (even those written by English-speaking writers, like John Irving). Then it dawned on me that, how can I put that on, parts of my life I perceive in English (computer skills and games, AD&D, fantasy worlds in general), while other parts of my life I perceive in French, and these two areas in my mind do not mingle. When I read and write English, I think in English, not in French.

About 10 years ago, I was thinking "My English reading skill is not good enough to read books in English", which was true at the time. Then I started reading in French the first book of David Eddings "Belgariad" ... and discovered that I had 9 books ahead of me, that it would take about 5 years for them to be translated in French. 5 years !!! It was totally impossible for me to wait that long ! So I started buying (and this was not easy before Internet stores, I had to go to Paris) and reading the whole Belgariad and Mallorean series in English (at the time, I slept with my dictionary more often than with my husband !). Then I jumped to the Raymond E. Feist "Empire" series; VERY hard to read, but very worth it. From now on, I have been reading all Fantasy books in English.

BUT, stupid as I am, it never occured to me to question my own thought about not being proficient in English ! So I went on buying all the other books I read in French ...

I seem to be very thickheaded this week ...

Blessed be this board, for opening my tiny mind to new ways of thinking !

(And cursed too, as I will absolutely have now to buy again a new English copy of every book I have ever loved written by English-speaking writers ...)

So ... the books I read (in French) are :

- a lot of books about history, as I found fascinating to get an insight about how people long dead were living, were thinking, what made them at the same time so close and so different to us
- some books about other counries, for about the same reasons as above
- a lot of books about archaeology. The archaeologists are real magicians (and dreamers too) ! They find a tiny bone, a set of holes and some stones, and they build a whole sociological story on so tiny material and their powerful brain.
- a lot of books and novels from the 19th century (Hugo, Zola, Lamartine, ...)
- a lot of books and novels from roughly the large first half of the 20th century (Hemingway, Koestler, Sartre and Beauvoir, Camus, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Steinbeck, ...), for the depth of the philosophical research about the role of man on earth, the mission of the writer, ...
- I am also fond of biographies, any that falls under my greedy hand
- now and again a book from a writer I don't know, that I pick in my French bookshop, to have a try
- some hard to classify writers, like John Irving
- not to forget comics (mostly French, only one in English : ElfQuest)
- other French stuff you won't know

Hi, LadyWendyZekke, I picked the word "ruined" because it conveys the notion that you have no money for the rest of your live and that of 25 generation of your descendants, rather than the word "broke" which I feel to indicate that the lack of money is temporary. The word exist in my dictionary (I checked !). As a French, you see, I have a slight tendancy to exxageration ...

Hey, Yorick, about David Eddings, I am not fundamentally opposed to what you say, but after a book like "The Path of Daggers" (very good, very dense, very gloomy), I found Althalus so refreshing last summer on the beach. If you are fond of interaction between people in Fantasy, I suggest you read Robin Hobb, and also the Pern saga (Anne Mc Caffrey).

Robin Hobb I think is the best when it comes to insight into characters, better than Jordan or Feist : when the book starts, you quickly make your mind about who are the good guys, who are the bad guys, and then, as the book goes on, the whole perspective you have on all characters drastically alters at every turn. Very rare.

Nobody reading the Pern saga ? Come on ! Sociologically speaking, this is the best, most clever, most coherent building of a whole imaginary society I have ever read. So human. To express how you come to love the characters, I would say that this is the only time that a fiction book has made me cry real tears ... (SPOILER)
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at Master Robinton's death.

[Memnoch]

Wow Moiraine, that was a really long post but had lots of interesting information. I remember the two authors that really got me into fantasy were CS Lewis (The Chronicles of Narnia) and Lloyd Alexander (The Black Cauldron, etc). Remember them?

And how could I NOT mention Anne Rice? Memnoch the Devil is a must-read. And Interview With The Vampire, the way she describes Paris, the City of Lights, in the 18th century is just so evocative.

[Drake]

Tolkien's books got me into books in general.
Now I mostly read books by Terry Brooks.

[Moiraine]

Hi, Memnoch,

I never read any of the two Fantasy authors you mention !

Anne Rice I read too (in French again), I favour the Witches series. Very gothic descriptions. And I always have been interested by books about vampires and the way they handle immortality. I bought the Memnoch book, but am ashamed to tell you I have still not read it ...
AND, coming back to more mundane thoughts, I would add that the bunch of mysterious guys with long hair is very sexy ! I have tried for years to have my husband grow his hair longer, but utterly failed. Alas ! The perfect man does not exist !

Lady Zekke- I read your reply about painting in the other post and I thought I would reply to it here. The craft stores that I go to here have lots of ceramic dragons. I have never met another female that likes dragons. My computer desk is filled with dragon stuff. I have not been able to find any websites that I can order ceramic unpainted dragons. If I happen to stumble across one, I will let you know and maybe you can start painting dragons again.
I did not mention a writer that I also enjoy that is Louis L'Amour. My husband loves him and is collecting all of his books. I decided to pick one up one day and I really got into it. I don't know if anyone else reads anything he writes but I do enjoy him also. I try to read alot of different types of books. I give everything a chance. Especially if it keeps me wanting to read from the beginning. After reading this post, I have decided that I really need to start finding some time to read. I sure do miss it. I use to always have my nose in a book. I think I will head to the library today and check some out. There are no book stores where I live so the library will have to do until I can get to a book store. I know have some authors and books that I will have to read.

[Yorick]

Memnoch, C.S.Lewis' Narnia chronicles got me into fantasy. I read them when I was seven and never looked back. His adult non fiction is absolutely brilliant.

The aforementioned Screwtape is one of his fictional creations.

Moraine the simple mind broadening experience of reading novels in another language has at this stage eluded me, consequently I am in awe of your achievements.
Which language have you found:
a) Has the more gifted writers
b) Has the most liberating vocabulary for writers/poets
c) Has the best poetry
d) Has the most accurate historical accounts (do they ever conflict?)

or is it impossible to compare.

I love the concept of bilinguality and rue the fact that in Australia it's nowhere near as common as in Europe. I speak some Italian and a little French (good accent/bad vocab as you know) but would love mastery of them, and even Gaelic or Deutsch.

[Moiraine]

Hi Yorick,

Nothing to be in awe with, only a utter lack of patience !

And I feel real real stupid never having realized that NOW I CAN READ IN ENGLISH OTHER BOOKS THAN FANTASY !!!

I'll give a try to Shakespeare first, having wanted to read him for years.

After that, I will ruin my family again buying English copies of the books I love from Steinbeck, Heingway, Fitzgerald.

Then I'll try non-fiction books (history/archaeology, I think).

I would not dare having an opinion about "the more gifted writers". I think that different languages reflect different cultures and ways of life, and so induce different writing subjects and styles. Did you know that when I was at school, I learned a little of Russian, Greek and Hebraic too ? I loved the insight into other ways of looking at the world. I enjoy this board for quite the same reasons !

Second part of my answer in a next post, so as to send this one right now.

There are laods of books you people have read, and i almost certain that i woudl love them ALL! I do love to read, and i can read almost anything.. though maybe not romance... hmmm

But you know i just do not have anywhere near the time, by a long shot. Once i pick up a book, the rest of my life stops until i put it down, which i rarely do unless i am starving, or very very sleepy. (i.e 3am)

So recently i just have not read all that much... there are just not enough hours in the day!

Bazz

P.S. In my post above i meant DUNE not DINE, spot the delibearate mistake?? *ahem*

[Ladyzekke]

Draconia - we always speak to eachother in between long intervals! Where do you live? I know you probably posted it before, but I'm too lazy this evening to dig through the backlogs. Anyway, are you familiar with the lead dragons that I mentioned? Ral Partha? Citadel? Just curious. All this dragonspeak has me remembering this website I found that had 1' tall manueverable dragons that you could pose and display. They really looked awesome, but I remember them being around $200.00 or something. I remember e-mailing the site and asking them what exactly were the dragons made of, and then our computer crashed and I never got my mail or went back there. Have to try it again and I'll give you the website address when I do just so you can see it (just for fun, something unique to look at). Cheers!

[Ladyzekke]

Draconia - found that website. Check out www.dragonrealm.com. The dragon models are exquisite!